Hawaiian Electric announced that it teamed up with Electric Power Research Institution to collect and analyze information from a charging station that has photovoltaic solar panels on the roof of a carport.

Cogenra Solar is a solar cogeneration systems and renewable energy service solutions provider. It announced that it completed a solar cogeneration project at General Hydroponics, which is the leading manufacturer of indoor agricultural systems and fertilizers for crops.

Flexible solar cells are where the solar power technology is heading in the future. But researchers must find the best material to protect the active layer of the solar cells from the environment. At present, glass is used as the protective layer.

General Electric is expecting solar power to be cheaper than energy generated from fossil fuel and nuclear reactors. GE attributes the drop in the price of solar power generation to innovations in the industry.

An important breakthrough has been made in solar power technology. A University of Missouri engineer has developed a flexible solar power sheet that can capture up to 95 percent of sunlight. This is way more than the average 20 percent that present solar panels can achieve.

You usually find solar panels mounted on top of carports, rooftops and fields but in the vineyards of Northern California, solar panels are found moored on irrigation ponds. Wineries want to go solar in this part of the state but they don’t want to pull out the vines.

Arizona-based First Solar announced that the company had flat first-quarter sales and decreased earnings. This is due to cuts in government subsidies in various European countries, which increased solar panel prices.